7 Overlooked NYC Museums: Hidden Gems Worth Visiting

In this episode, we'll explore unique NYC museums including George Washington's favorite tavern, massive Unicorn tapestries dating back to the 1400s, and even what it was like to live in the cramped tenement buildings as an immigrant in New York in the 1860s.

1. Museum of the Dog
2. Fraunces Tavern Museum
3. Museum at Eldridge Street 
4. Museum of Jewish Heritage 
5. New York Transit Museum 
6. The Met Cloisters
7. Tenement Museum

1- Museum of the Dog

• Founded in 1982, originally part of the AKC headquarters (American Kennel Club)
• The museum offers rotating exhibits featuring objects from its 1,700-piece collection and 4,000-volume library
• Limited-time exhibits have included:

Price: Around $15. Get tickets here. Closed Mondays and Tuesdays.

2- Fraunces Tavern

• Oldest bar and restaurant in NYC - 1762

• On December 4, 1783, nine days after the last British soldiers left American soil, George Washington invited the officers of the Continental Army to join him in the Long Room of Fraunces Tavern to bid them farewell.
• In early 1785, Fraunces agreed to lease the Tavern to the Confederation Congress for use as office space for the Department of Foreign Affairs and Department of War

• Currently has multiple restaurants and bars within it

Price: Around $10, with some free admission options on weekends. Tickets are only available at the museum, but information is available here.

3- Museum at Eldridge Street

• The Museum at Eldridge Street is housed in the historic Eldridge Street Synagogue. Built in 1887, it is an architectural marvel, and a symbol of immigrant aspirations realized. The Eldridge Street Synagogue was the first synagogue in America purpose-built by immigrants from Eastern Europe and was designated a National Historic Landmark in 1996

• Unbelievably beautiful architecture, including ornate stained glass
• Extremely knowledgeable guides, usually small-ish groups

Price: Around $15 and we recommend the docent-led discovery tour vs self-guided (same price). Get tickets here.

4- Museum of Jewish Heritage

• As a place of memory, the Museum enables Holocaust survivors to speak through recorded testimony and draws on rich collections to illuminate Jewish history and experience. As a public history institution, it offers intellectually rigorous and engaging exhibitions, programs, and educational resources.
• If you go on a weekday, expect students on field trips
• The Rescue in Denmark exhibit is one of our favorites

Price: Around $18. Get tickets here. Closed on Mondays, Tuesdays, and Saturdays.

5- New York Transit Museum

• Housed underground in an authentic 1936 subway station in Downtown Brooklyn, is home to a rotating selection of twenty vintage subway and elevated cars dating back to 1907.
• Visitors can board the vintage cars, sit at the wheel of a city bus, step through a time tunnel of turnstiles, and explore changing exhibits that highlight the cultural, social and technological history – and future – of mass transit.

Price: Around $10. Get tickets here. Closed on Mondays and Tuesdays.